


The Morning After

by ryeloza



Series: Hypothesis [2]
Category: Parks and Recreation
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-29
Updated: 2019-09-29
Packaged: 2020-11-01 12:57:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 913
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20815553
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ryeloza/pseuds/ryeloza
Summary: This is not at all how Ben pictured the morning after his first night with Leslie. But maybe he should have expected it since Andy and April are, well, Andy and April.Short follow-up to "Hypothesis," but can be read as a stand alone.





	The Morning After

Living with April has honed Ben's senses, given him the acute ability to realize when she's staring at him, even if he's otherwise occupied. It's a shiver up his spine akin to being doused with a bucket of ice water; a creepy-crawly feeling that makes every hair on his body stand on edge. And it's that unnerving feeling that draws him from an otherwise deep sleep.

Leslie is draped across him--really, wrapped around him completely, from her left leg slotted between both of his, to the tight grip of her arm around his chest, to her head laying on his shoulder--and he has about ten seconds to enjoy the sensation of waking up with her (even if it is similar to waking up in a human vise) before he realizes that it isn't her hair ticking his skin that drew him from sleep.

When he turns his head, he realizes exactly what woke him.

"Fuck!" he shouts, jolting violently and jostling Leslie. Instantly, she's awake, smacking his ear as she sits bolt upright, mumbling something incoherent about waffles that he can't pay attention to because he's too busy recoving from a fear-induced heart attack. "What the fuck are you doing?"

April snaps a picture with her phone (another picture? How long has she been there?). She's sitting in Andy's lap at the side of the bed, the demonic glee in her eyes betraying the disinterested expression on her face. "Nothing."

"Nothing? What the hell are you doing in here?"

"April? Andy?" Leslie's face is scrunched adorably as she turns toward his roommates--and good lord, even if she is disoriented from the abrupt wake-up, she really needs to join him on this side of hysteria.

"Morning, Leslie!"

"Go--Good morning," she yawns. She reaches out and pushes Ben back down on the bed, settling her head back against his chest like there is nothing weird going on here, and seriously, why the hell is he the only one freaking out? April takes another picture, and Ben groans.

"Aw, you guys are so cute!" Andy crows. He kisses April's shoulder. "Dude, I told you it would happen."

"Yeah. Thanks. Now will you two get the fuck out of here?"

"Jeez. Someone's crabby in the morning."

"Yeah, Ben. How come you're not in a better mood? Hmm?"

He rubs a hand over his forehead. He can feel a headache forming and this was definitely not how he imagined this morning starting when he and Leslie fell into bed together last night.

"April," he says, trying to keep his voice calm even though he feels anything but, "you can't send those pictures to anyone."

"Why? Did my fingers stop working?"

"Pictures?" murmurs Leslie. And then, finally, he feels her tense against him. She sits up again and gapes at April and Andy like she's seeing them for the first time. "What pictures?"

"The ones April took with her phone."

"April--"

"Don't worry, Leslie," says Andy. He picks up a strand of April's hair and presses it to his nose. "We know that you and Ben can get into trouble for boning. We're not gonna tell."

"Well that's reassuring. I'm totally convinced."

April rolls her eyes and throws the phone onto the bed. "Here, losers. Go ahead. Delete them if you don't believe us."

If she's expecting him to feel remorse for his sarcasm, she's sadly mistaken. He reaches for the phone and begins to delete the pictures--starting with the especially creepy ones of them sleeping and ending with the one April just took. The one where he looks utterly frustrated and Leslie...

Well, actually, Leslie looks beautiful, her hair all mussed and spilling across his chest and this contented little smile on her face, and dammit--this is what he wanted to wake up to this morning. Not his potentially psychotic roommates.

"What are you guys doing in here, anyway?" asks Leslie. She still doesn't sound nearly upset enough about this. In fact, now that he has April's phone, any panic is gone.

April studies her nails. "I had nightmares."

"So what?" asks Ben. "Are we your parents now?"

"You're old enough to be."

"Not accurate."

"Whatever. It's your fault. I've been scarred for life by your weird, gross sex noises. It's only fair that you be traumatized too."

Ben lies down and rubs his eyes. Maybe if he ignores them, they'll go away. Maybe if he ignores them, he can pretend this was all a bad dream.

Which is, apparently, April's goal.

"Will you guys make us breakfast?"

Good lord. They really have turned into parents overnight.

"Sure," he agrees. "If you leave right now."

They basically break down the door in their eagerness to leave. Immediately, Ben gets up and slams the door behind them, pressing in the flimsy lock even though he knows it won't keep them out for long, and then turns to finally get a good look at Leslie. She's light in the morning--huge smile and tangled curls--and the sight of her in one of his t-shirts is doing things to him, and god, he could really get used to this.

"You're breaking your promise," Leslie scolds as he crawls back into bed. He leans in to kiss her, pressing her back against the sheets and smiling.

"Yeah? Well, I also promised you some things last night. And I am a man of my word."

He is.

Later--much later--he gets around to making breakfast.


End file.
